By Jayaram V
In Hinduism, puja is essentially a ritual suggestive of symbolic
offering of ourselves, our thoughts, desires, actions and things
we own to God, as a mark of devotion and surrender, enjoying whatever that
comes to us as
a gift from Him. In Hinduism puja is the most popular form of divine
worship. It is performed either by individuals or by groups and
either directly by a worshipper or indirectly by a priest on
behalf of the worshipper. Although many people take liberties
with it to express their love and devotion to God in their own
individual ways, the traditional form of puja has a definite
form and structure built around, which is usually followed in
more traditional households, temples and religious places. The way a puja is conducted traditionally in Hindu households is akin to the
way a guest is invited into the house and treated with utmost respect.
The Hindu tradition equates a guest with God with this simple expression,
"Athidi devobhava", which means a guest is verily God Himself.
We have discussed elsewhere both the outer aspects of puja
and its historical development. Here we will discuss the symbolic significance
of puja and the symbolic meaning of the various objects used during the ceremony.
The meaning of puja
The word "puja" consists of two letters,
"pa" and "ja". "Pa" means "parayana" or continuous repetition of
the names of God and "ja" means "japa" or continuous mental recitation
of the names of God. So according to this interpretation "puja"
is essentially a kind of worship in which both parayanam and japam
are practised by the devotees.
According to another interpretation, "Pu" means "pushpam" or
flower and "ja" means "jal". In the puja ceremony both flowers and
water are offered to the deity during the worship. The letter "ja"
can also mean simultaneously "japam". So if we take these twin meanings
of "ja" into consideration, puja becomes that ceremony during which
water and flowers are offered to God along with recitation of His
names.
Lastly "pu' means "purusha" and "ja" means "janma" , to arise
or wake up. During the puja ceremony life breath is installed in
the deity and He is brought to life or into His dynamic aspect.
It also means that the purusha in the worshipper also wakes up after
the ceremony as he receives a new life and new consciousness (with
the partaking of prasad) from the deity.
Vigraham. Vigraham means the statue or the image of the deity.
Vigraha (vi+graha) also means that which removes the ill effects
of the grahas or planets.
Symbolism of various objects used in puja
In a puja ceremony we use certain objects, mantras and
methods of worship. On a superficial level we assume that they
are liked by the deity who is being worshipped and
therefore by using them in our worship we gain the grace and
goodwill of the deity. However, from a spiritual perspective a
puja ceremony should not be conducted for personal gain but to
express our love, devoting and surrender to God. Puja is a
formal way of doing meditation upon God and declaring one's
faith in Him. It helps us to focus our minds upon God and remain
in a heightened state of devotion. And when we do it in a formal
manner by following a definite procedure, we are expressing our
willingness to forego our personal choices and follow the
required discipline as a mark of our surrender to God. The
various objects used in the puja ceremony are meant to establish
a direct relationship with God on personal level and seek His
help. We discuss below the symbolic significance of these
objects.
Purna kumbha or Purna kalasa (the sacred vessel): It is
generally placed as the chief deity or by the side of the chief
deity before starting the puja. Symbolically it stands for mother
goddess in general, or goddess Lakshmi in particular. It consists
of an earthen or a metal pot with either water or rice in it , with
leaves (of generally five specific species) in its mouth and a bowl
of rice, flowers and coconut at its top. The pot represents mother
earth, the flowers represent the ornamentation, the rice in the
bowl represents either the material wealth or the powers of the
goddess or both and the coconut represents the divine consciousness.
Naivedyam: It is our ignorance (avidya) which we offer to
the deity. The food symbolically stands for the earth element and
in human beings for the gross body. So it can also means the body
and the mind (which stand for the ignorant consciousness in us)
which we place in front of the deity for transformation. When it
is blessed by the deity it becomes the bestower of knowledge.
Pushpam: It stands for the good in us. We offer the deity
the good that has blossomed in us. On the side of the elements it
stands for the element of water because the flowers (especially
the lotus) grow out of water.
Phalam: It is the fruit of our action which we are supposed
to offer to God as a symbol of our detachment, self-sacrifice and
surrender.
Gandham: It stands collectively for the desires (vasanas)
and the desires we have for various things in life, which we are
supposed to offer to the deity in order to become free from the
cycle of births and deaths.
Dhupam: It is the smoke or the clouded consciousness (the
very mind with all its thoughts and ignorance) that exists in us
which is also an obstacle on our path to self realization. As long
as this cloud is there, we cannot see the light or illumination
in our consciousness. Dhupam also stands for the illusion which
keeps us chained to this world. When we offer dhupam to God, we
offer symbolically our illusions and our fickle mindedness. On the
elemental side, it stands for the element of air or the breath body
in us. It stands for prana which we offer to the deity with a sense
of sacrifice.
Deepam: It is the light in us, the very soul that exists
in us which we offer to the deity as acknowledgement of our surrender
and devotion. On the elemental side it stands for the element of
ether that exists in us as Atman.
Kumkum and turmeric powder : The red powder stands for
our emotions or for our inner wisdom. The turmeric powder stands
for our inner purity and on the negative side, for our inner pride
and egoism.
Prasad: When we offer our ignorance to God He suffuses
it with knowledge and light. The word "prasad" is a combination
of two words, "pra" + "sad". That which is near life and truth.
The food that is offered to God is symbolic representation of the
gross body into which at the end of worship God breathes new life
new light making it divine. When we share the prasad with others,
we share with them symbolically the knowledge we so gained during
the worship.
